.png)
LAS VEGAS — This year’s National Finals Rodeo was one for the record books, with Northwest contestants doing well. But everyone was in the shadow of Utah’s Stetson Wright, who won two world championships.
Wright took the All Around and bull riding titles following a stellar NFR in which he won $405,417 to $229,121 in saddle bronc riding and $176,296 in bull riding. He won first in three go-rounds of saddle bronc riding and Wright finished the year with $940,929 in winnings at Professional Rodeo Cowboy. Association rodeos.
TJ Gray of Dairy, Oregon, won the Top Gun award for winning the most money in one event, winning $295,655 in the bull riding. He won the bull riding average, riding seven of 10, a full bull ahead of the second-place rider. Gray with some clutch rides in which few contestants made the whistle at the NFR, including the seventh round when only three made qualified rides and the 10th round when four qualified, winning both rounds. He had the highest marked bull rides of the NFR, a 90.75-point ride in the eighth round and a 90.5-point ride in the 10th round.
Gray finished runner up to Wright for the bull riding championship. He finished third in the Columbia River Circuit standings. The Columbia River Circuit is made up of rodeos in Washington, Oregon and North Idaho including the Newport Rodeo.
Riley Minor and Brady Minor of Ellensburg, who won the team roping at Newport, finished seventh in the average at the NFR. They placed in three rounds, coming out of Las Vegas with $53,129 each. Riley Minor finished 14th in the world as header and Brady 13th as heeler. The won the Columbia River circuit titles.
Sam Petersen of Helena, Montana, won the average in the bareback riding and finished second in world standings. He won $226,853 at the NFR, placing in six rounds.
Another Montana cowboy, tie-down roper Haven Meged of Miles City, Montana, won $136,125, finishing third in the average and won the ninth round with a 7.0 second run.
Blackfoot, Idaho steer wrestler Stetson Jorgensen won $135,435, finishing fourth in the average and placing in four go-rounds, including winning the 10th round with a 3.4 second run. Tristen Hutchings of Mountview, Idaho, had a good finals, winning a go-round in the bull riding with a 90.5-point ride and placing in three other rounds to take home $93,740.
The Women’s Professional Rodeo Association’s breakaway roping Nationals Finals was held Dec. 22–23 in Fort Worth, Texas. The breakaway roping is held at most PRCA rodeos, including Newport.
There were some fast runs at the finals. Four of the 10 go-rounds were won with 1.9 second runs and the average was won by Rylee A. George of Stephensville, Texas, with a time of 29 seconds on 10. She was the only woman to successfully rope all 10, taking home $16,914 for the average and $8,831 by placing in six go rounds. Shelby Boisjoli-Meged of Miles City, Montana won third in the average and placed in six rounds. Boisjoli- Meged finished third in the world with $178,598 in winnings.
2025 world champions Bareback riding: Rocker Steiner, Weatherford, Texas, $507,532; steer wrestling: Tucker Allen, Ventura, California, $398,913; saddle bronc riding: Statler Wright, Beaver, Utah, $455,940; team roping header: Andrew Ward, Edmond, Oklahoma, $373,838; team roping heeler: Jake Long, Coffeyville, Kansas, $372,091; tie-down roping: Riley Webb, Denton, Texas, $555,543; barrel racing: Kassie Mowrey, Dublin, Texas, $403,881; breakaway roping: Taylor Munsell, Alva, Oklahoma, $191,175; bull riding: Stetson Wright, Beaver, Utah, $546,471.
